


Five Times Ricky Needed Nini

by musicalsmarvelandmore



Series: HSM:TM:TS One Shots [2]
Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: 5+1 Things, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Anxiety, Bisexual Ricky Bowen (HSM: The Series), F/M, Falling In Love, Idiots in Love, Love Confessions, M/M, Panic Attacks, Past Ricky/Nini
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-13
Updated: 2020-02-09
Packaged: 2021-02-27 10:01:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22235269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/musicalsmarvelandmore/pseuds/musicalsmarvelandmore
Summary: 5+1 Five Times Ricky Needed Nini and She Wasn't There, and One Time He Didn't.Ricky Bowen has a lot of stress and anxiety leading into his junior year. Despite being broken up, he still needs Nini to help him figure out his way through this mess that is high school. Though, it still works out because even alone, Ricky is able to figure out a few things about himself.
Relationships: Ricky Bowen & E.J. Caswell, Ricky Bowen & Gina Porter, Ricky Bowen & Nini Salazar-Roberts, Ricky Bowen/E.J. Caswell
Series: HSM:TM:TS One Shots [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1596517
Comments: 16
Kudos: 145





	1. Chapter 1

Ricky regretted not telling Nini that he loved her. It felt impossible then, and even now, weeks later, it still did. What was love, really? He didn’t even know if his parents loved each other anymore, if they ever did. How was he supposed to know what love looked like?

But they were in a weird place, with Nini off at theater camp and Ricky not sure if they were together. He asked for a break, but what did that mean? He didn’t know. Summers were a no man’s land.

Ricky stared at his phone. He had had no contact with Nini since he had made that mistake, but he desperately needed to talk to her, though it kind of looked like that wasn’t happening anytime soon.

His mom didn’t seem inclined to come back to Salt Lake City anymore. He missed her, and how their family used to be. Heck, even though his dad asked him to call his mom a few times, she never seemed to care about him. It was weird, that she was still in Chicago, but she didn’t even text him or call him. Ricky was the one who had to initiate any contact.

He wasn’t dumb. Ricky knew that his parents were having relationship issues, but how were these things supposed to get better with his mom out of state? Shouldn’t they be together, to figure out how to work this out? His dad said they were in counseling, but they were in different states. How was that supposed to work?

The house was just so empty now, what with only the two of them living there. His dad had thrown himself into his work since his mom had left, leaving Ricky alone at the house, unless he went over to Big Red’s, who had his own commitments. Ricky still went to the skate park, but every day felt like a repeat of the last- boring and monotonous. Video games, skateboard, rinse and repeat. Until school started back up, things were just going to continue like this.

He would have given anything to talk to Nini, but he couldn’t. Ricky didn’t know where the two of them were at, but he wanted to stay dating her and he wasn’t about to do anything to upset the balance. She had spilled her heart out to Ricky, and what had he done in return? Absolutely nothing besides freak out.

Ricky was freaking out now, as he pulled his knees up to his chest from where he was sitting on the couch. Deep breaths. He could do that.

Before he had screwed up the best thing in his life, he’d call Nini when he was having a panic attack. She’d talk him down from it, getting him to focus on something else. If she could, she’d come over.

He opened his phone, typing in his passcode. 6464. Nini. Before he really knew what he was doing, he opened up his texts to Nini, starting to type a message. _Hey Nini I’m sorry for texting you I just-_ before deleting it. He couldn’t do this to her. She was probably off having a great time at theater camp, and who was he to stop that? Ricky was the one who had screwed everything else up, not her. She deserved so much better than all of this.

Ricky’s breathing got more and more ragged. He wanted to call her, get her to calm him down, but that would just be selfish, and he couldn’t do this to her, not now. She was probably off having a great time, and she didn’t need her boyfriend who couldn’t even say “I love you” to get in the way of that. It just wouldn’t be fair to her.

He buried his head in his hands, hearing his breathing get harsher but feeling oddly separate from it, like this panic attack was happening to someone else not to him. It felt like his world was falling apart, and Ricky had no idea how he could ever piece it all back together again.

Ricky had dropped his phone at some point, but it wasn’t like he had anyone to call, anyway. His mom didn’t even want to talk to her son. Sure, he wanted to stay here in Salt Lake, but at least acting like she liked her son enough to want to take him with her would have been nice. It was like she didn’t care about him at all. He knew that his dad was hurting, which was why he was throwing himself into work, but that didn’t make things any easier.

When Ricky could finally get his breathing under control, he was still all alone in his living room on a Friday night. His mom may have left and his dad might have dedicated himself solely to work, but Ricky would just have to take care of himself on his own. He couldn’t call Big Red about something like this, and he couldn’t burden Nini with his freak outs, especially after what he did to her.

Nini might deserve the world and a heck of a lot better than Ricky, but once she got back from camp, he would make up for all of this, somehow. He loved her, even though those words felt impossible to say.

He needed a plan for junior year, starting with Nini. She was amazing, and their relationship was definitely worth saving. He just had to figure out a way to prove it to her.


	2. Chapter 2

The next time Ricky needed Nini, it felt like his entire world that he had been trying to build back up had collapsed.

Sure, fighting with Nini hurt, but that was an issue that he was surprisingly capable enough to take care of on his own. She thought he wasn’t taking the musical serious enough, but Ricky knew he couldn’t quit then, and now, he didn’t want to quit. But everything hurt and he was honestly just scared.

His parents were officially splitting up. Had they even tried to fix things, or did they just give up all those months ago when his mom had moved to Chicago?

Ricky missed his mom so much, but she still was never the one to reach out to Ricky. He always had to be the one to call. Shouldn’t that be her job as his mom? Things definitely weren’t fair, but he just couldn’t handle it anymore.

When he was at Big Red’s, the other boy had told him all the gossip since EJ and Nini broke up and had an awkward moment in front of everyone when EJ was filling in for Ricky. So maybe he wasn’t the only one having a bad day, but it wasn’t just that one thing. His entire life was falling apart, and it felt like he had lost his mom, maybe even permanently. It just wasn’t fair, but there wasn’t anything for Ricky to do about it now.

He was trying to think of anything other than what was going on at home and for some reason, he found his mind drawn to EJ of all people. Ricky felt kind of bad for the dude. Sure, EJ had done some stuff to him, but Ricky was the one who accidentally hit him in the face with a basketball just yesterday.

It really had been a heck of a long week.

One thing that EJ had said to him when they were in the bathroom stuck with Ricky, as he skated along the dark sidewalks that he had known forever. _Just stop acting, period. Why can’t you just be real?_

Ricky didn’t know why he couldn’t be real, but EJ definitely had a point, even though the two boys didn’t know each other. As far as Ricky was aware, the only reason EJ ever paid him any attention was because they were literally supposed to be best friends in the play. And yet, there was just so much truth to that statement, in ways that Ricky didn’t know if he had the words to explain.

Though, true to form, Ricky hadn’t thought of all this stuff in the moment, only to over-analyze it all later. Besides, it didn’t matter what EJ thought or did. Now, he was just a non-factor. Since Nini was single, Ricky should have a better chance to win her back.

But right now, he just couldn’t bring himself to care about dating Nini again. His parents were getting a divorce, but even before he knew that, Ricky had no idea who it was that he needed to or wanted to be. Was he really just acting instead of being his real self? If so, then who was he supposed to be?

He guessed he knew why EJ hated him, but Ricky couldn’t let himself get caught up on that stuff. He had auditioned for the musical to win Nini back, so obviously her boyfriend at the time wouldn’t like it. Ricky didn’t want anyone to hate him, even EJ, but it looked like it was too late to change that. Though, really, there had to be some way to make working together a lot easier than it was now. It was an accident when he hit EJ, but the tension was real, which was why Miss Jenn had them passing the ball back and forth to cause their dumb argument. What did EJ mean when he said that Ricky deserved everything that’s coming to him. And infinity plus one? Really? They weren’t in middle school.

Ricky knew that EJ hated him, but surely it would be easier if they got along? Ricky would fully admit that he didn’t know a lot about theater, but considering how awkward he felt and the looks that he could see on the rest of the cast’s faces, surely they should at least come to an agreement or something to make it easier on everyone else and themselves?

He didn’t know, and maybe he was just being stupid. Nini would know though, if he was overreacting or actually making a valid point here. She also knew EJ better than anyone else that Ricky knew. It was weird, but he felt like he wouldn’t be hurt talking with his ex about her more recent ex and how to get alone. Asking Nini didn’t actually seem like that bad a plan. Huh. Apparently he came up with that once in a while.

But when he ended up at the Salazar-Roberts place, unsure of where else to go, he found that he just couldn’t spring this on her like that. She was clearly upset, and so was he about his mom, and talking about that stuff was good. She already knew Ricky’s relationship with his mom, and it was good to have that. Even though he hadn’t talked to her about this stuff since their breakup.

Ricky ended up leaving after he made the mistake of leaning in for a kiss, before he could ask her for advice on relations with the cast. He didn’t know what he would do about EJ, but even though Ricky needed Nini’s help, he couldn’t put that on her, not when she was already upset.

He had no freaking clue what to do, and even though Nini might, Ricky would have to stumble through this on his own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! This fic is giving me an excuse to watch the series again (and probably another time for good measure, and another for my next fic lol). Hopefully the next chapter will be up soon featuring a Ricky Bowen bi panic.


	3. Chapter 3

Ricky Bowen was really confused, not just about what to do, but also, what was he thinking?

Auditioning from the musical, in retrospect, had been a great decision, even though it hadn’t worked out how Ricky had expected. He wasn’t back with Nini, yet, but he wasn’t actively working towards that either. They both needed time, and to be friends again. Now, it wasn’t just him and Big Red against the world. He had friends, people who liked Ricky for who he was, even the parts of him that weren’t normal.

Ever since the incident with EJ that resulted in the other boy’s split lip, they hadn’t really talked. Ricky didn’t know what he would say. He wanted to, and he wasn’t sure why that was. He hadn’t succeeded, though that may be in part because of the meddling of the rest of the cast. The relationship drama among the three of them was well known, and many of their castmates had become experts at keeping them apart.

Ricky knew that they thought he should be thankful, but he really didn’t hate EJ, and he didn’t think EJ hated him either. He wasn’t sure why he cared what EJ thought of him, but he definitely did. But he didn’t have a chance to talk with EJ about anything outside of running lines at rehearsal. They should spend more time together, considering their characters were supposed to be best friends, but life rarely seemed to work out that well.

Ricky was sure that the other boy didn’t want to spend time with him, so maybe that should have been what he expected. Again, why did he care so much?

Though, besides his issues and drama with EJ, things with the musical were working out really well. Before this semester, Ricky didn’t think he ever could dance, or memorize all those lines, and yet, he had surprised even himself.

The homecoming drama, and whatever had happened between EJ and Gina there was weird, but it had the benefit of bringing Ricky and Gina closer together. He never had a problem with the other girl, but she was actually pretty cool and found Ricky funny, which was always a bonus. He loved being able to make other people laugh.

Considering EJ wouldn’t even talk to him, the other boy definitely had an influence in Ricky’s life. Technically, he had the other boy to thank for his friendship with Gina, though he would never tell the other boy that one.

Anyway, after they saved Miss Jenn’s job, Gina came over to Ricky’s house. His dad was still at work, like he seemed to be a lot these days. He was sure Gina was in a similar situation family wise, but they never talked about that stuff. Family sucked, but they had an endless amount of things to talk about that weren’t so negative.

They were watching the second High School Movie, because Gina couldn’t believe that he was playing Troy Bolton and yet had never seen the sequels, which Gina had been teasing him about ever since she found out.

Both of them kept up a nearly endless commentary about the movie, the characters, and the actors. Gina had a whole thing about how hot Zac Efron was, and Ricky was about to agree when he froze and realized something.

He seriously thought Zac Efron was hot, and not in an abstract way. In a literal, this guy is really hot. Like how Ricky thought about hot girls.

Wait, was he bi?

And even though he was there with Gina, and he should be able to talk to her about that stuff, he found the words sticking in his throat.

He needed to talk to Nini about it. Was he bi? He didn’t know. How was he supposed to tell? It wasn’t like there was some hard and fast way to tell, but he couldn’t deny that he definitely felt things towards other guys. But did that make him bi? He had no clue.

It wasn’t even that Nini would have more experience or anything about it. She just knew him, had known him for almost forever, and they talked about stuff like that. If he was bi, then it seemed only logical that Nini would have been the one to figure it out before him.

Being bisexual made sense, the way he felt about guys, but that didn’t feel like something that he could share. Even though Gina was right beside him, he just couldn’t ask her. Ricky wasn’t sure why. She would care, or judge him or anything, but that wasn’t what mattered.

He couldn’t tell anyone. It wasn’t like he knew for sure, and even after that, he didn’t want to tell anyone. He liked girls a lot too, so maybe he wouldn’t have to tell anyone soon? He didn’t know how.

Nini would have been able to help with all that stuff. Even if she didn’t know the specifics, she’d walk him through his choices, to get everything organized in his head so he could finally make sense of it all. He was just so confused. Who was he supposed to be? Everything was just so confusing, and he had no clue how he was supposed to take care of these things. Since when had everything got so confusing?

He couldn’t ask her about it though. Ever since she had broken up with EJ and he had almost kissed her, the relationship between them was delicate and balanced, and Ricky didn’t want to do anything to upset that. He wanted to be friends with her, really, but he couldn’t screw it up.

Was he bi? He wasn’t sure, but he doubted he’d be able to figure it out anytime soon. He had plenty of time to think on it, even if he wanted to talk about it. He couldn’t risk that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is set around Thanksgiving, and the next two parts take place around opening night! I start classes on Tuesday and I hope to have this fic finished by then, since I have ideas for more EJ/Ricky stuff. Thanks so much for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

Ricky was starting to think he wasn’t as good with people as he thought he was.

Sure, he was friendly with most people at East High, but getting beyond that point just seemed impossible and not sustainable at all. Ricky wanted people to like him, but how was he supposed to do that?

He was glad he had joined the musical. That question wasn’t a question anymore, and he was glad that Big Red had embraced it with him. All of those people, they had become a family. They had been through lots of stuff together, and Ricky loved it, despite all the other things that were going on. That stuff didn’t really matter. He just wanted to focus on himself instead.

Ashlyn having a party on Thanksgiving was an unexpected surprise, and one that Ricky was extremely thankful for. He loved most of the people who would be there, and it was a great excuse to hang out with them outside of rehearsals. The show was finally falling into place, but it was also stressful, so this was a nice plan to get out.

Right now, Ricky was waiting in his house. His dad had already left for Aunt Judy’s, but Ricky still had a few hours before he needed to think about leaving for Ashlyn’s. Usually, he would have skated over with Big Red, but his best friend had texted that he was heading over early to help Ashlyn set up. Ricky had texted him good luck. His best friend had never had a girlfriend before, but he definitely had a thing for Ashlyn.

He couldn’t believe that his mom had a new boyfriend already, one that she hadn’t even told him about, but Gina had shown up to take him off to the party before he could end up calling Nini. He felt almost on the verge of a panic attack, but it was fine, really. Everything wasn’t okay, and he didn’t know if it would ever be again. It wasn’t even that bad- he had wanted his dad to put himself out there, but this, this was just a lot. Why couldn’t she have told him? Why was Ricky the one who had to call her for Thanksgiving in the first place?

Ricky missed his mom, which made all of this even harder. He was mad at her, but he couldn’t deny the fact that he still wanted his mom to care about him, which it was feeling more and more that she didn’t.

Carlos’ game was definitely interesting, to say the least, though it was fun, messing around and laughing while bonding over the thing that had brought them all together. Their show had faced a lot of challenges, but they were almost there, and Ricky couldn’t imagine doing it with anyone else.

The other team chose to bop, and Carlos told them to pick a member from each team. After talking it over with his teammates, Ricky stood up, only to be facing EJ.

Ricky could feel the tension between them, spreading out to everyone watching. Or maybe it started with them. He could hear their murmurs, and Seb’s “oh boy”. But it was fine, really. Sure, the Nini situation and hitting EJ with a basketball had made things difficult between them, but ever since then, it wasn’t as if they had had a confrontation or anything. There was just a lot of awkwardness.

He didn’t break eye contact with EJ, even before the challenge, which Carlos announced as “Your challenge is to stare at your partner and do the Sharpay and Ryan warm up thing for 60 seconds straight without laughing... or killing each other.” Well, the staring at each other thing was already happening.

The challenge itself was fun, but Ricky couldn’t stop himself from staring at EJ, and he wasn’t sure why. Oh well, it was probably irrelevant, right? Everyone was well aware of their rivalry as both of Nini’s ex boyfriends. It was probably something caused by that, right?

After Gina’s phone call, Ricky just felt lost. She blew him off, and Ricky got that. But she had been the one who convinced him to come over here in the first place and with her gone, all his worries and stress about his mom came back full force. He may have avoided it for a little, but now it was back, sinking his heart. What was he supposed to do about any of this?

He felt bad for snapping at Nini, but there was no way that she knew what he was going through. She told him to talk to his mom, because she was his mom, but she couldn’t get that. Nini’s moms were awesome together but also to their kid. Ricky couldn’t imagine Nini having to be the one to initiate contact with them. They loved her, and Ricky was afraid that his mom didn’t love him. She hadn’t just moved away, but also abandoned him.

Ricky was a little afraid that he would cry, as he made his way out of Ashlyn’s house. What a Thanksgiving this had turned out to be, huh? Last year, his family was still intact, and now, his mom was in Chicago with her boyfriend, and Ricky was sure that no matter what anyone said, they had been together longer than these two weeks that his parents were officially split up.

“Hey, Ricky! Wait up!”

And Ricky turned to see EJ coming towards him. Of all the people at this party, of course it was him.

Ricky paused for a second, then kept walking. “I’m not really in the mood for you to yell at me.”

He didn’t look up at the other boy when he caught up. “Sorry about all that. I just wanted to check if you were okay.”

And that really wasn’t what Ricky was expecting. “What?”

“Hey, I’m not all that bad,” EJ said. Ricky could practically hear the smile in his voice. “But I know that you and Gina were getting close and came here together. And I heard you and Nini fighting. I know what that’s like.”

Ricky’s heart sunk. Of course, this was about Nini. He couldn’t blame EJ for that. After all, Ricky also was trying to get back with Nini as her ex. EJ just wanted to do the same thing.

“No offense, EJ, but I really don’t think I should be talking about it with you.”

EJ sighed, placing one hand on Ricky’s shoulder, spinning Ricky to face him. “Look, I feel really bad about what I did. I’m sorry. I’m trying to make amends. I acted like a jerk and an idiot because I was jealous of you and Nini, and then I screwed everything up. But when we were playing Carlos’ game right now and everyone acted like we hated each other? I don’t want to hate you, and I don’t want you to hate me. So I’m sorry. Can we be cool?”

And honestly, Ricky felt that. Now that both boys weren’t dating Nini, there was no reason they shouldn’t get along. It would certainly make things a lot easier at play practice. “Yeah, definitely. And I’m sorry too. We’ve both screwed up, but I don’t want to hate anyone.”

EJ grinned at him. It was a very nice look on the other boy. “We’re all in this together. See you Monday for practice.”

Ricky managed a smile of his own. “See you then, dude.”

The other boy turned and started heading back the other direction. Ricky watched him go, not willing to turn back around yet. That apology was surprising, but Ricky was glad. He wanted things to be easier with EJ, and it was great that EJ brought it up too, since it meant the other boy was serious about burying their weird drama.

As Ricky watched, EJ stopped, looking back at Ricky. When the two made eye contact, EJ grinned again, raising a hand in farewell. Ricky raised his as well, before turning back around and heading home.

While it was great that both of them had apologized and made amends, something just seemed off. Sure, he had heard about EJ’s sudden desire to fix everything, but it was more than that. He could have fixed things with Ricky without being so friendly and nice. The two boys barely knew each other, and once they started interacting with the musical, it was always overshadowed by the Nini stuff.

He wanted to text Nini about it. She knew what EJ was normally like, right? Was this typical EJ? Something about it just felt weird, but Ricky couldn’t put his finger on exactly what that was. Most of what he knew about EJ was from observation, not experience. But Nini would know.

But how was he supposed to ask her that, especially after he had snapped at her just minutes before for trying to give him advice? He couldn’t just do that. Especially since he ended up taking her advice. He was mad at his mom, but he still missed her. He wanted to text her he took her advice, and needed to figure out what was going on with EJ, but he just couldn’t. Ricky had no clue what was going on and needed help, but that wouldn’t be coming from Nini, not today.

The next school day, when they all met in the cafeteria to try to save their show again, EJ sat behind Ricky and Ricky hoped that no one could notice his unrelated smile to the danger their show was in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was later than I intended, but it also ended up nearly twice as long because I wanted a real EJ-Ricky interaction to explain why they're acting less tense in the beginning of episode eight. Thanks for reading, and I'll hopefully be back soon!


	5. Chapter 5

Ricky would never admit it out loud, but he was nervous.

He had never gotten stage fright before, but then again, he had never been the lead in a musical either. The closest thing he had to stage experience was elementary school concerts, and those didn’t really count. So basically, Ricky had absolutely no clue what he was doing, and was also kind of screwed.

It wasn’t even close to time for opening night, but he couldn’t just wait around the house doing nothing. He felt like nothing would truly help, but he showed up at the school to find he wasn’t the only one with the idea. But even knowing that everyone else was nervous didn’t help. Most of them had done a musical, or at least something similar before.

Ricky still wasn’t sure how he had gotten the lead in the first place, and now more than ever, he felt like he didn’t deserve it. He was an idiot auditioning in the first place, and while he had loved the rehearsals, now was a completely different matter. He was totally out of his league.

After talking with Nini, he still had no clue what to do before the official call time, but he wandered the halls of the school. It was odd, being here when no one else was, but he didn’t mind. It was quiet, allowing his thoughts to have free rein. It was questionable whether that was a positive.

He put in his earbuds, listening to the familiar soundtrack, trying not to think about how that would be him singing those songs way too soon. He wasn’t ready at all. He felt like a fraud.

Ricky didn’t notice that he was panicking until after he had collided with someone, knocking his earbuds out. “Oh, sorry,” he said instinctively, before realizing that it was EJ of all people who he had hit.

Ever since their talk after the disastrous end to the Thanksgiving party, things had been easier between them, though Ricky didn’t want to press his luck. He was more aware than ever that this should have been EJ’s role. Ricky may not have paid a lot of attention to the East High Theater Program before his audition, but this was EJ’s world for the past three and a half years. Ricky didn’t know if he had gotten the leads, but this one should have been his.

EJ seemed much less tense than Ricky felt and let out a soft chuckle. “It’s fine. I should have watched where I was going too.”

Considering the amount of nervous energy Ricky had, it seemed almost unfair that it didn’t seem to affect EJ at all. Ricky didn’t know if he had ever actually seen the other boy flustered. Angry, yes, but considering how nervous Ricky felt about almost everything, it was unfair that it didn’t seem to affect the other boy.

“Well, I’ll see you at call, I guess,” Ricky said, before turning to go. He didn’t know exactly where he was going, but that didn’t matter.

“Hey, are you okay? You don’t look so good.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.”

EJ looked like he doubted that, but he let it go. “Hey, you know that you’ll do great tonight, right? I mean, I would have loved to play Troy, but you’re a natural Troy. You deserve it.”

Ricky blinked and almost took a step back in shock. EJ complementing him? What was this? Sure, things had decidedly been getting better between them, but this now, that was just weird, and he honestly had no clue how to respond.

EJ grinned at him. “Hey, I’m just telling the truth.”

Ricky was trying to find the words to express his current feelings, but before he could, EJ’s phone buzzed, and the expression on the other boy’s voice changed. “Hey, I got to take this. See you at call time!”

As Ricky watched the other boy walk down the hall, staring down at his phone, Ricky felt a pang of something he couldn’t identify. Clearly EJ had someone more important to talk to Ricky. He wasn’t sure why that bugged him so much. It shouldn’t, right? EJ was his own person.

Though, every time this semester that EJ had been talking with someone in a relationship way, Ricky had had problems with it. Nini, for obvious reasons. Gina, because it was weird that his ex’s ex had gotten over her so quickly. And now, this mysterious person.

But, looking back, why was he so upset about the Gina/EJ thing? There wasn’t a real reason for him to get so irritated, but he definitely had been.

Wait, was he jealous?

And not of EJ, for being the most perfect example of a human being ever, who Big Red had called basically a Hollister model. No, of the girls EJ was with, and the person EJ was texting now taking his attention.

What was going on?

Ricky honestly had no clue. He was pretty sure he was bi, which made sense that he could admire that EJ was hot, but really? EJ? The person he was supposed to have a rivalry with? When he should be focusing on getting back together with Nini?

But he really hadn’t been focusing on that either. Ever since EJ and Nini broke up and the basketball incident, he could have made his move at any time, and yet, he hadn’t. Why?

He had to talk to Nini about this. She was the only person who fully understood what Ricky’s life was like, even though he still hadn’t come out to her. Ricky had initially planned on coming out to her after the show, once he had won her back, but now, he wasn’t sure if he even wanted to get back together with her.

It didn’t matter what he felt towards EJ, since that boy was very straight, but that was fine. But that didn’t change the fact that he needed to talk to someone about this, and soon.

But as he was halfway down the hall to go find Nini and talk it over, he stopped in his tracks. He couldn’t do this to her.

Nini was his best friend besides Big Red, and he knew how nervous she was about tonight. He couldn’t be selfish enough to make these hours before the show about him, especially since apparently he was crushing on her other ex boyfriend? He couldn’t do this to her, not now. She looked about as panicked as Ricky felt when he saw her earlier.

For now, he would take this nervous energy, primarily about the show but also about EJ, and just wait. After all, apparently EJ believed he could do this. He had to focus, because tonight would be big. Ricky just knew it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're almost there! Hoping to finish the last chapter this weekend, and move onto new EJ/Ricky projects! Thank you all so much for reading.


	6. Chapter 6

Ricky was panicking, and Nini was nowhere to be found. Again. Honestly, he needed to someone else to rely on, because this wasn’t working and he was still panicking.

He couldn’t do this. He had thought before the show that he had no business being in there, but he had gone out there only to screw up, and maybe screw it up for Nini. She deserved to get into that school, and she wasn’t going to be able to do it with Ricky as the leading man. He couldn’t do this.

Ricky all but ran into the dressing room, taking off Troy’s jersey and thrusting it at EJ once he had the other boy’s attention. The other boy was a great actor, should have gotten the role in the first place. Ricky had no place, no business being here. The sooner he was gone, the better. He didn’t belong here, that much was for sure. What had he even been thinking, auditioning at all? But that was the thing, he hadn’t thought. And now, look at what had happened. He might end up screwing up Nini’s chances at that amazing school because he couldn’t get his head screwed on straight. The whole thing, it just wasn’t fair.

This stuff wasn’t even about his mom’s boyfriend showing up unannounced in the middle of the show. There was just so much going on, and it was overwhelming. Nini needed her best shot to get into the school, and Ricky definitely wasn’t it.

EJ frowned as he took in the jersey and Ricky’s appearance. He was sure he looked like he was freaking out. “What’s going on?”

“You need to do the second act. As Troy.” There was no hesitation in his voice. Ricky knew that as soon as he got out of here, he was going to panic, but he wasn’t going to fall apart in front of EJ. He couldn’t let EJ see him like that, but EJ was the only person who could fix this now.

“Are you sick?”

Now was not the time for EJ to be worried about Ricky’s welfare. Sure, he was starting to like the guy, maybe in more ways than one, but this wasn’t the right time or place for that. “No, I’m good. Just not good enough to help get Nini where she wants to go.”

EJ looked like he hadn’t the faintest idea what was going on. Maybe Ricky wasn’t the only person who had been kept in the dark about the dean’s presence. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m screwing up, out there. I can’t blow this for Nini. There’s someone in the audience who could change Nini’s life. She needs the best shot to impress them.”

Ricky knew that he was rambling, but he just had to keep on going. There was just so much going on. But when he opened his mouth to continue, to tell EJ what he thought of the other boy, he hesitated. This wasn’t the time for that. He had to get this resolved now.

“Will you do it? Go on, take it,” he said, hoping to convince the other boy so that he could leave this place and go clear his head. He needed to get out of here. Ricky had no idea what he was going to do once he was able to leave, but in the grand scheme of things, that stuff really didn’t matter all that much.

EJ shook his head, silently, like he was unwilling to give in, but he had to. Ricky definitely couldn’t handle the role, and EJ’s hands were more than capable. He was by far the better actor, probably the best at East High. He was the best person to play Troy in the whole school. Better than Ricky.

“Look, EJ, you have to take it. I can’t do it. I have to get out of here.”

Ricky took another step closer to EJ, staring him in the eyes. This had to be done.

As he watched, it was almost like something snapped. He liked EJ. Ricky had been guessing such things for a few weeks now, but as he stared at EJ, he knew it was true.

So much of their relationship has changed, all for the better. The animosity over competing for Nini, that was all gone. Otherwise, EJ would have accepted the role in a heartbeat. But he wasn’t. Why?

A lot of things didn’t make sense right now, including this. Everything was spiraling, so of course Ricky was going to make bad decisions.

It just so happened in this case, that part of this bad decision was pressing his lips to EJ’s.

EJ’s lips moved against his, and for a second, Ricky let himself live in the moment, before he realized what he was doing, breaking away from the other boy.

And then, Ricky ran. He couldn’t face looking EJ in the eye. He didn’t know what had just happened there, but he had to get out. He couldn’t handle this. It was just so embarrassing, kissing a straight boy. No, not just kissing a straight boy. Kissing EJ, the boy he had a crush on.

He had to assume that EJ would take over as Troy as he ran down the halls of East High.

Ricky didn’t need Nini. He couldn’t tell her about this anyway. He just wanted to be left alone. He knew that he was scared, but he just had to take this one step at a time. That was the only way he’d ever be able to get there. Ricky wasn’t exactly sure where there was, except at least he wouldn’t have to be involved in all of this mess anymore, and that was the most important.

In fact, if he needed anyone, it was going to be EJ, but he wasn’t about to talk about that. Sure, he liked EJ, but that didn’t make any of this stuff easier. There was a lot going on, but he had no idea how to even begin to talk about any of this. It just seemed impossible.

It was much later before any of this was able to come to life though. After the show, after Nini had brought Ricky back as Troy, after everything that had happened. It was almost magical. At the beginning of the semester, he could have never imagined EJ Caswell, of all people, giving him the shot and the role. EJ stepped down to give Ricky that moment. Even after what had happened during intermission.

It was kind of the best night ever.

Of course, now, Ricky was just completely exhausted, but he didn’t have the time for this now, because cast party!

Now, he had never been to one before, or really had any idea of what it would be like. Nini had always gone to the cast parties, but Ricky had never gone with her. He didn’t belong there, though maybe now, he actually did.

Speaking of Nini, they had a great talk in the dressing room. As long as Ricky could manage to be just a little bit brave, then what happens now was going to be absolutely amazing. But had Ricky ever really managed to be brave? He had to.

Right now, he was in the kitchen at Ashlyn’s, as everyone in the living room was setting up for a High School Musical: The Choosical game. Ricky was excited and thrilled, really. But that didn’t make him any less tired. Or any less scared. He had to do it, but it was terrifying.

He was grabbing a drink from the fridge when he heard someone enter the kitchen. And he looked up to see EJ of all people entering the kitchen.

Ricky wasn’t ready for this. Sure, he knew that he had to, that he needed to get this off his chest, but it was like he just froze at the sight of the other boy. How exactly was he supposed to be able to do this?

Instead, he just stared, unable to really say anything, before EJ, apparently fed up with it, broke the tension between them.

“So, I hear that you and Nini got back together after the show. Congrats.” EJ said, his voice dull and monotone.

Ricky fidgeted. They weren’t. He might love Nini, but he wasn’t in love with her. They were great friends, but they also were better as friends. Best friends, for sure, but not any romance in that.

EJ snatched a drink out of the fridge, spinning on his heel before starting to walk away. Ricky knew that he had to act now. He had to find the courage, somehow.

He cleared his throat. “Hey, EJ, hold up a second.”

The other boy slowly turned back around. RIcky couldn’t manage to look the other boy in the eye, but he still had to find the words.

His voice cracked as he spoke next. “Nini and I aren’t dating. We’re just friends.”

EJ scoffed, but Ricky could see some of the tension leave his shoulders. “And why would I care about that?”

Ricky took a step closer. Even though he knew what he thought he should do, that didn’t make any of this easier. He felt like his voice wasn’t working, that his limbs weren’t responding to him. But he’d regret it if he didn’t do this.

“Thanks for getting me back up on that stage.”

EJ crossed his arms. “I didn’t do anything.”

“Yeah, you did. You stepped offstage and told Nini what to do.”

Ricky wasn’t sure how to transition to what he did want to talk about, as he watched EJ shrug. “Nini’s the one who came and got you.”

“Yeah, but you believed in me first. Thank you.”

He forced himself to keep eye contact with EJ, as he took another step closer. EJ didn’t move away.

“But what I- well, I wanted to say that- back before that- I, uh.”

EJ cleared his throat, interrupting Ricky’s stammers. “If you wanted to make sure I don’t mention what happened when you asked me to take over as Troy, don’t worry about it.”

“But I want to talk about it!” Ricky said, before realizing that might not be the most subtle way. This would be so awkward. He didn’t want to be straight up rejected. It was too late for that now.

EJ stumbled back a step, looking shocked and confused at the same time. “Wait, you do?”

RIcky nodded, biting his lip. This was his chance, as long as he didn’t blow it. “Yeah. I think I have a crush on you. That’s what me and Nini were talking about in the dressing room. I’m bisexual, I think.”

He couldn’t look directly at EJ after that. There, he had done it. He could never face EJ again, but at least he had actually said what he was feeling, and that had to count for something.

Ricky didn’t look up until something touched his shoulder, and he looked up to see EJ, only inches away from him until he found EJ’s lips meeting his.

It was just like before, except even better. Ricky didn’t even have the words to describe it. He was living in the moment, and this moment, it was right.

When they broke apart, EJ grinned at him. “By the way, if that wasn’t obvious enough, I think I like you too.”

And for now, this was enough. Ricky was happy, and he was ready for whatever his future, especially as a part of their relationship, would hold. And this time, he definitely didn’t need Nini because he had EJ.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a few weeks after I thought I was going to get it out, but here's the last chapter, and extra long at that! I enjoyed writing it and hope you enjoyed reading it! I can't wait for season 2, and have been working on other EJ/Ricky fics in the meantime.
> 
> Thank you for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! No beta, all mistakes are my own. I'll be adding tags as I go along because while I know some moments before, I tend to post things without planning. Season 1 of this show was amazing, and I can't wait for season two (even though it feels like forever before it'll come out).


End file.
